In a previous blog, we discussed the difference of using a PC repair shop versus working with a managed service provider (MSP). Waiting on a PC repair is time consuming and can cut productivity for days on end. A benefit of partnering with a MSP, management of the company’s entire computer infrastructure is off-loaded to an experienced support team who can assist immediately. In addition, the vendor is proactively monitoring the infrastructure which allows customers to focus on generating revenue for the company without experience significant downtime. So, what are the benefits of partnering with a MSP? Let’s discuss.

In my experience, “If it isn’t broken, why fix it?” is the common train of thought that is shared between business owners in regards to their technology. I understand that decision-makers typically have countless other resources to manage and cannot be reasonably expected to stay up-to-date on the changing landscape of modern business technology. While larger corporations may have an IT department to handle this, most small businesses simply do not have those resources. Having managed IT projects for companies in many different verticals I’m hoping it will benefit others if I take a moment to discuss the common pitfalls and mistakes that are made in regards to the technology used by small businesses. I see these mistakes more often than I believe I should, and my goal is to not only describe what to do, but to also explain how and why these issues may affect your business.

Email security is a hot topic that a lot of companies should be discussing internally. Many businesses are finding that they are able to implement email more easily with services like Google Apps and Microsoft Office 365. The email security issues we’re commonly familiar with are not necessarily caused by the infrastructure being used, but by how end users are treating their business email accounts. There are numerous ways that nefarious individuals can send emails to corporations to make end users perform an action, click, and open malicious attachments. The main issue is that companies are not properly educating their employees about proper email protocol. Let’s chat on about how we can coach end users to be more email responsible and proper email techniques.

It’s a fact – social media marketers do have their slow days. Perhaps people are on vacation or resources are being pulled for another project and there is not much organic content coming through the marketing pipeline to post for the week. As social media gurus, we know that there should always be something to contribute, and we want to provide content that is respectable, fresh, and relates to the business we are posting for. However, regardless if we are managing social media for a company or posting for our own business we may still experience the occasional slow day. During a recent gathering with other contributors, I was asked how to create unique content for a company when you don’t necessarily know everything that is going on internally from day to day. I believe that this is where some of our skills as marketers are tested. Instead of offering a checklist of ideas (we see a lot of those), I’m going to provide a solid framework towards crafting your own ideas and creating great content on a slow day, even if you initially have very little to work with.

Supporting your IT in-house can be expensive, aggravating, and time-consuming. It’s challenging and costly for small businesses to maintain an IT department and stay current with the latest technology. Companies are seeing IT expenses continually increasing on a month to month basis, and training staff to perform IT tasks takes time away from focusing on work that generates revenue. As a result, growing businesses are beginning to take advantage of outsourcing their IT support to a managed services provider.